Oppertunity to do a 79 T-Bird, need advice

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Mike, et el,

I have an opportunity to do a 79 T-Bird that has been sitting in a garage since early 1991/92. The car has more sentimental value to the owner than anything else.

In about 1989 the car was hit and repaired/repainted with single stage paint at a very reputable body shop and the car has pretty much sat ever since. I've only been sent pictures. I've been told by the owner that the paint flawless. The owner is meticulous and I believe him, however, if there is orange peel, I won't touch it because I'm a novice and don't have the experience in wet sanding.

But if things are in good shape, and I'm willing to proceed:

Need some advice on product & technique for a number of items.
1.) Paint - I'll follow Mike's single stage... starting with a rub of #7 and then on with all Pinnacle products (PC7424) LC Pads etc. I'm comfortable here.

Also, the pin stripes are painted on, however, should I tape these off?

2.) Chrome - Need some help here. The chrome looks old and tired as does the tail lenses.


Chrome on front needs help, and inside the egg crate design of the grill, if you look closely, I can't tell if that's just dirt or actual chrome wearing off. Again, any help here would be greatly appreciated!



3.) Rims: Those are the original trade mark honey comb wheels that came on 77/78/79 T-Birds. Would be nice to bring these back from the dead. They look rough, but I will need your input here to make that happen.



Plus, the car is just old and has it's weathered look. Specifically the Landau Roof. Any thoughts on this?



Here is a better view of the hood (looks good) but you can see the egg crate of the grill is funky. Don't know what is going on here or how to correct it.





Any and all help would be greatly appreciated! This is a very special car for a special person and it needs some love and attention to which I'm willing to give.
 
Also, where would I start/begin? Typically no modern cars, I clean wheels first, then move on to wash the car. Modern day cars don't have "real" chrome and materials like this car.

So, would I try to restore the chrome & wheels first, as that will probably make a mess?

It's going to be a big multi-day job for sure!
 
I'm no expert, but what comes to mind is that on the chrome bits, you need to determine if it's real chrome, or chromed plastic. Real chrome you can use metal polish, but if it's plastic, you need to treat it as such.
 
I could swear there was some plastic chrome on my dad's '76 Ford Country Squire wagon. Obviously there is a lot of real chrome like on the bumpers, but the grill, and the bits surrounding the tail lights? Anyway, you've seen the car in person and I haven't, so I could easily be mistaken.
 
trekkeruss said:
I could swear there was some plastic chrome on my dad's '76 Ford Country Squire wagon. Obviously there is a lot of real chrome like on the bumpers, but the grill, and the bits surrounding the tail lights? Anyway, you've seen the car in person and I haven't, so I could easily be mistaken.
Click to expand...

It's been so long since I've personally looked at that car. For sure the bumpers are real steel with chrome. You could be right about the grill... Don't know until I get a good look at it for sure.

But any help is certainly warranted, especially on those old wheels, chrome bumpers, landau roof, etc...
 
Id bet the trim pieces are chromed plastic. The bumpers are probably the only chrome.

For the tail lights you can polish them as you would paint (cc paint) not sure #7 would do much for plastic.

Grill / wheels you either have to take off and refinish or just explain that the finish is coming off and you cant refinish it but will clean it (which is the general job description)

Roof just some 303 cleaner and then protectant. Or anything that is made for vinyl cleaning / protecting.
 
I had a 78 cougar and the chrome moldings on the side were real metal not plastic chrome.
 
Side trim could be too, I didnt notice it there.

Rust and pitting: Usually some lighter surface rust will come off with some 0000 steel wool. Pitting you dont have much choice.

Painted stripes should be ok, no need to remove them IMO.
 
paul_g said:
In about 1989 the car was hit and repaired/repainted with single stage paint
Click to expand...

The #7 rub-down treatment is for antique paint in bad condition. The paint on this car looks like it's still in very good condition.

Might want to simply use a normal process and then apply #7 after any compound and polishing work but before applying wax or sealant.

Normal process being something kind of like this....

Wash
Clay
Compound
Polish
#7
Wax

Be sure to do a test spot. For a project like this I would test the entire process from start to finish in one section and see how it turns out, not just for example, compound or polish a section and then if it looks good start that process to the car.

So for your test, after the washing and claying,

Do you correction step whatever it is... (compound and polish or perhaps just polish)
#7
Wax and/or sealant

Then inspect.




paul_g said:
What about the painted pinstripes? Take them off?
Click to expand...


IF they're starting to look tatty, or the pin strip paint is already missing in some areas, ask the owner for his take. Normally pin stripe paint is soft enough you can buff it off.

If you don't buff it off then lightly buff over it and it and the paint around it will clean up real good.


:)
 
Mike, thanks so much for chiming in.
I made a typo in my question. In stead of saying:
"What about the pin-stripes? Take them off"...
I should have asked if I should TAPE them off... They are painted on, not decals.

For product on the paint, I'm going to stick with Pinnacle.
1.) Swirl & Scratch Remover
2.) Advanced Finishing Polish
3.) Liquid Souveran

I believe the side molding is metal with a chrome plate over it, likewise the trim around the windows.
 
If I recall correctly the grill is Alum/pot metal with chromed cross bars horizontally and vertically and satin (flash chrome) in the honeycomb. That was the era where the Thunderbird, the LTD2, etc were all pretty much the same car with different trim levels. Not the US car markets most stellar time period.
 
Update to this thread.

The T-Bird came back from being at the mechanics shop for a few weeks.
They went through the whole car, replaced a lot of parts with NOS (new old stock) and I'm told it's running fantastic.
Pic's of the bird landing back home...





With that said, here are a few new things I learned.

The Rims are original and are actually rubber coated aluminum wheels.
It was a limited offering in 1979... So the wheels are actually grey rubber coated.

The owner has a new grill (New old stock) which is pristine still in the box.
Having said that, the grill is plastic with chrome paint on it. The side moldings are brushed aluminum, as is the trim around the windows.

The vinyl roof is original... I'm wondering what is a good cleaner for that? Pinnacle Vinyl/Leather cleaner?

So, after the owner replaces some of the parts it will more than likely be coming to me for a few days...
 
That is a $4,000 car

Cleaner Wax and moving on, unless the Owner Loves the Car


What is his Budget?
 
AGOatemywallet said:
That is a $4,000 car

Cleaner Wax and moving on, unless the Owner Loves the Car


What is his Budget?
Click to expand...

Budget is of no concern. It's going to get whatever it requires.
Thanks for the input everyone, I require no further input, no replies required.
If there is something specific I need I will PM Mike.

thanks!
 
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